The last time these sides met the series was still in the balance. That changed in Pune where India won by 15 runs to secure an unassailable 3-1 lead. Sunday’s encounter at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai is the final T20I encounter of the series and both sides will be hungry for the win.
The Wankhede stadium is a venue where the toss is important. Almost every team that wins the toss elects to field first, and more often than not, the side that wins the toss wins the game. Expect the skipper who wins the toss on Sunday to field first.
India v England | 5th T20I | Sunday 02 February 2025 | Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai | 15:30
India
The focus of this game is Suryakumar Yadav. He’s a Mumbai local and he will be leading India at home for the first time. But he is not a player in form now having gone seven successive innings without a half-century – his longest streak in T20I. He has managed just 26 runs in the series to date with two ducks. He will want to strike form on Sunday.
Suryakumar Yadav does have a good T20 record at the Wankhede where he has scored 1493 runs at a strike rate of 156.66, an average of over 38. He’s due a big score, but what is interesting is that in a series that has seen the spinners perform well, Suryakumar has been dismissed by a quick in each innings.
Tilak Varma was dismissed in the third T20I to bring an end to an exceptional run that had seen him score 336 runs between T20I dismissals. He followed up his dismissal in Rajkot with a first-ball duck in Pune. England has put the brakes on his free-scoring, but he is still averaging 51.78 in the shortest form of the game and is a dangerous competitor.
Opener Sanju Samson’s contributions have been decreasing with every game. He started with 26 in the first T20I and has followed it up with scores of five, three and one. It is safe to say he is struggling. But surely, he won’t score a duck to complete the pattern of decreasing contributions.
India has been in great form recently. Since they won the T20 World Cup last June they have managed 16 wins and three losses in 19 T20Is. But their record at the Wankhede is not great – that’s not to say it’s bad, but it certainly isn’t dominant. The home side has played five T20Is at Wankhede, they have won three and lost two.
There will almost certainly be at least one enforced change to India’s side for Mumbai with Shivam Dube expected to miss out after picking up a concussion last time out. Who comes in will be the big question, but with the series in the bag, India may well look at a chance for allrounder Ramandeep Singh. But, on a pitch that is more friendly to the quicks than some of the others they have encountered earlier in the series, the spot could go to Harshit Rana or Mohammed Shami.
England
England have played three T20I at Wankhede Stadium and have won two of them and lost one. They won their only previous game against India at the venue in 2012. the other two games for England at the venue were against South Africa and the West Indies. England beat the Proteas but lost to the Windies.
In each of the three previous games, England has played at Wankhede the side that won the toss fielded first. In each of those games the side that won the toss, won the game.
Given the opening spot at the start of the series, largely due to his ability against spin, Ben Duckett is a key figure for England. He started poorly in the first two games, but he has come right in the second two, with scores of 51 and 39. If he can get runs on Sunday, it will go a long way towards steering England to a win.
The Wankhede pitch is one that is kind to quicks. England has plenty of fast bowlers to draw on with the likes of Jofra Archer, Saqib Mahmood, Jamie Overton, Brydon Carse, and Mark Wood. While spinner Adil Rashid is sure to play, England will look to play to the pace strength in Mumbai. This could be the game where Archer and Company get to shine.
Verdict: England
It’s a dead rubber at a venue that should play to England’s strengths more than the previous four. England haven’t been badly beaten, and they will see this as their chance for a morale-boosting second win. The toss will be important and the side that wins will have a distinct advantage.
